The Track Changes feature in Microsoft Word is very handy for wordy folks like your Informit editors. But even ordinary mortals might come to like and use revision marks if they follow through on Laurie Rowell's suggestions in this article.

Like this article? We recommend

Like this article? We recommend

Back in the days when markups were all done on paper, editing generally
involved 1) scribbling out and inserting text, and 2) writing a set of questions
or comments directed to the author. Because the tracking feature in Word lets
you do manuscript markup electronically, it only makes sense that it offers two
comparable features: revision marks and comments.

The presentation of these features changed with Word 2002. In earlier
versions of Word, revision marks were always presented as color-coded entries in
text, while comments were buried someplace you had to hold your breath and cross
your eyes to find. The default setting since Word 2002 has been for all
revisions and comments to appear in balloons out in the right margin. More on
this feature later.

To get into revision mode—so that everything you type or delete in a
document is taken as a correction—open the Tools menu and click Track
Changes. The Reviewing toolbar will pop into place with the Track Changes toggle
highlighted (see Figure
1).

Notice that the display at the left end of the toolbar says you’re
viewing your document in a state known as Final Showing Markup. This document
state allows you to see your changes as you make them. You can turn on tracking
and make corrections while viewing the text in Final state (see
Figure 2), but
you won’t see the changes you make as revision marks (unless you switch
back to Final Showing Markup). It will just appear to you that you’re
making changes in your text.

Entering revision marks in Final mode is convenient if you’re making
changes and comments on a document already corrected by three other people. At
least you can read the text as you review it. Of course, you can’t see the
comments of the other reviewers or the original text; instead, what you see is
the text as it would look if all the current revisions were accepted. If you
have a question, however, you can select Original from the drop-down list to see
what the writer had in mind before everyone else on the team got hold of it.

The murky byways of Word’s tracking mode are frequently not found in
the procedures, but in the process. Of my five points, some make you look
better, some save you time. In addition to ensuring that your reputation remains
lustrous, you should save enough time between documents to take an ergonomic
walk through the halls—perhaps for a gaze out the nearest window.

Ask Yourself, "Do I Need To Use Revision Marks?"

This is not an issue of utility, but one of policy, and the answer to this
question is a resounding yes if you’re a writer who must route
your work through multiple reviewers. Anyone who has ever had to reconcile the
conflicting markups of an opinionated team of six by thumbing through hard
copies has murmured blessings on Word’s tracking feature. If you’re
sending to a group, just remember: It must go to one reviewer at a time, in
rising hierarchical order. The person with greatest authority over the result
goes last. In that way, each reviewer will reconcile his or her comments with
those of previous reviewers, saving you from having to do it.

If you’re a writer, editor, or subject-matter expert working with
professionals who use the tracking feature all the time, this feature can be a
handy device for the daily give-and-take of ideas.

However, there are times when you might want to skip the tracking. Rev marks
force somebody to make a decision (accept/reject?) at each and every text
change. This approach can waste time if the changes don’t need to be
questioned. If you’re correcting nonfiction text so that it conforms to
the Chicago Manual of Style or your company’s in-house style
guide, the commas, apostrophes, and semicolons are not matters of opinion;
they’re matters of rule. Do they need to be discussed with the writer?
Judge your own political situation, but in my experience you can save time and
effort if these matters don’t have to be negotiated. The first time I got
a manuscript back from an editor and the copyediting changes were not in
revision marks, I’ll admit I was surprised. Ever since, I’ve just
been grateful.

Here are a few other instances where you might consider skipping the
tracking:

If you’re a writer or editor with a very busy client, revision marks
can focus precious time and effort on trivial decisions. Where possible, just
comment or use judicious highlighting.

If you have a client who doesn’t use the tracking feature, the process
can trigger that client’s frustration.

If you have a writer who is controlling but makes numerous errors, minimize
the rev marks.

Whenever I decide not to send revision marks to an author or
reviewer, I still track my changes as I make them, and save a file with the
tracked changes in it. That way, if someone asks, I can attach the document with
rev marks to the next outgoing email message.

NOTE

If you forget to use revision marks at all, you can always compare your
revised version to the original by using Tools > Compare and Merge
Documents. Your revision marks will pop right into place.